


Oh, I'm afraid of the things in my brain, but we can stay here and laugh away the fear.

by yukiawison



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Blind Marius, Deaf Grantaire, F/F, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-25
Updated: 2016-04-25
Packaged: 2018-06-04 12:44:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6658213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yukiawison/pseuds/yukiawison
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cosette had said the guy was cute. Of course he couldn't tell; one of the downsides of being blind was that every blind date was really a BLIND date.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Oh, I'm afraid of the things in my brain, but we can stay here and laugh away the fear.

Marius Pontmercy prepared himself for the gentle ding of bell attached to the Musain's door. Sounds always intensified once they were inside the familiar coffee shop: the whir of the  machines, the clang of trays going into ovens, early morning chatter that Marius was often perceptive enough to hear. 

 

And he had to rely on his ears more than most people. 

 

He gripped Cosette's arm as she went on babbling about a dance she was thinking about asking Éponine to. They weren't dating, but Cosette very much wanted them to be and she could get awkward in these situations. "If you could see me Marius, it's ridiculous. I blush so much people think I'm sick or angry or something," she continued. "Watch out for the step." He always felt for the step but it was nice of her to remind him every time. 

 

She guided him to their usual table and he took off his glasses for some semblance of normalcy, letting his eyes adjust to the change in light. He ran a hand through his hair absently and focused on the sounds and scents of the room: cinnamon, perfume, strong dark coffee, and hot chocolate, his hot chocolate to be exact because Cosette was coming back. Her heels were clicking on the floor, hurrying to him. She didn't like to leave him alone for very long. He was painfully aware of this. 

 

"They were out of poppyseed bagels so I got you plain," she said, opening his cream cheese and putting the knife in his hand. They had been working on her instinctive need to help him. Now she was trying to let him try things on his own. Putting cream cheese on a bagel he could do. 

 

She leaned in. "Hey Marius there's some guy staring at you, and not in the rude way in the _he's cute_ way." _That_ he couldn't do on his own. 

 

"Well do I look cute?" 

 

"Sweetie you always look cute," she replied. 

 

"But seriously Cosette does he have reason to be staring."

 

"I'd say so, yes"

 

"And is he..?"

 

"Yes and he's coming this way."

 

"Hi," he sounded like he was talking through a smile. "I was going to ask if I could buy your friend a drink but I'm not sure it works that way in coffee shops."

 

"I feel like we'd all be a lot more hyped up on caffeine, what do you think Marius?"

 

"I think I'm drinking hot chocolate."

 

"That's true," she said thoughtfully. 

 

"Shots of espresso could get very bad very quickly," the stranger added. 

 

"Oh look, it's Éponine," Cosette laid a soft hand on his. "I'm going to go say hello. I'll be right back."

 

"Your friend is pretty smooth."

 

"So I'm told. They're over there whispering aren't they."

 

"Yes," he replied. "You know I'd be happy to keep discussing the ins and outs of buying people drinks in places other than the customary bar if you'd like to go to dinner with me."

 

Suddenly Marius felt very awkward. Banter was all well and good but dates were not his forte. 

 

"Sure," he said, unsure. "Should I give you my number?" 

 

The stranger rustled around for a bit, presumably for a pen. "Here," he said, no doubt holding it out.

 

"Um, I'm going to need a little more help than that," he said stutteringly. Where was Cosette when he needed her?

 

"Oh, right I'm sorry. I thought you were...but I wasn't sure how...sorry, here," he pressed the pen into his hand and handed him a napkin. 

 

"Yeah, I'm totally blind. It can take some getting used to."

 

"No kidding." 

 

"But I get along pretty easily with a cane or Cosette, that's my smooth friend."

 

"That's good. So you can't see anything then?"

 

"Vague shadows, like I'm in a dark room with a curtain over the window...at least that's what Cosette says," he shrugged. "So for example I can tell that you're about two inches taller than Cosette but I couldn't tell you what you're face looks like or what you're wearing."

 

"And have you always...?"

 

"Yes," he answered. He was used to these questions. 

 

"Okay...well."

 

"If you don't want to..."

 

"No, no, no the offer still stands. I want to get your opinion on flirting in juice bars."

 

Marius laughed. "Fair enough..." 

 

"Courfeyrac," the man finished. 

 

"I'm Marius Pontmercy," Marius said. 

 

"Well Marius Pontmercy, I'll call you," Courfeyrac said, and Cosette told him later that he had leaned in very close, with his palm resting on the table. 

 

"You have no idea how cute that boy was," Cosette said. They had relocated to the counter so they could talk to Èponine as she worked. 

 

"No," he said plainly. "I don't."

 

"Well he was," Èponine filled in. 

 

"Are you going to go out with him?"  Cosette asked. 

 

"If he calls."

 

"Are you kidding me, of course he'll call," Èponine replied.

 

"Èponine's standing with the light from the window shining on her, and it's catching in her hair. And she has that frilly apron you've felt on and flour on her nose," Cosette said. From time to time she liked to explain what things looked like to him so he could make some sort of snapshot to remember. Of course he only had a vague understanding of what the objects and concepts she described looked like, so his mind filled in the rest.

 

"We've got class," Cosette and the image in his head dissipated. They _did_ have class. Marius was at the law school and Cosette was a junior at the university. Èponine was a senior and she worked part time to cover costs.

 

Marius was in his first year of law, which was difficult but doable with Cosette to help him. She was studying to be an interpreter for deaf people. They often joked that it would've been more useful for her childhood best friend to be deaf not blind. She was big help though. She knew how to be patient and understanding and to communicate in ways that were easy for him. 

 

She helped translate books into Braille and taught him to form letters with his hands so he could say hello to her deaf friends. She was really good at what she did. 

 

The same could not be said of him. Marius was awkward in their mock trials, forgetful of important cases and dates, and often ran into his desk when he hadn't had enough coffee (for obvious reasons.) The only thing he was really good at was volunteering for the school's legal aid program that offered legal assistance to students and others in the community. People trusted him for some reason. And they listened when he tried to help. 

 

***

When Courfeyrac returned to his apartment, to which all his friends had keys, Enjolras was there. Dammit, he was hoping he could put off this conversation. 

 

"Enjolras we have a problem," Courfeyrac said as calmly as he could. He figured maybe if he slipped it in during one of Enjolras's long winded lists he wouldn't ask what the problem was. 

 

"Combeferre is coming by later to go over the agenda for the board meeting and see if we need to attend and we can't forget to set up the poster for freshman orientation because R keeps changing the bullet points so they're passive aggressive and frankly wrong and we can't let him near the final draft. And we need English tutors for next meeting and the community center asked me to promo their new lecture series on healthy relationships which reminds me we need to...wait did you say problem?"

 

"Go on, you were going to say something about the fundraiser for the domestic violence shelter," Courfeyrac said, voice louder than usual. 

 

"Don't change the subject," the blonde's eyes narrowed icily. "What's the problem?"

 

"The student center is being renovated. And uh...our room won't be available for 5 months."

 

Enjolras's face was blank for a moment and Courfeyrac prepared for the worst. Enjolras tended to overreact when it came to the Association for the Betterment of Campus, or ABC as it was more commonly called. 

 

"And they expect us to agree to this?" He said darkly and Courfeyrac shivered. Enjolras could give extravagant speeches on climate change, bring people to tears with a tirade on sexual assault on campus, and stun outsiders with his extensive knowledge on legislation related to one of his _projects._ He was a leader, and inspiration, and could fucking terrify people in eight words. 

 

"They're sorry?" He replied hesitantly. 

 

"They have to renovate the roof is about to cave in."

 

"So we're expected to find a new space that will let us work with 50 plus people and stay late sometimes until 3 in the morning to plan and is accessible to students in what? Three days!" He said tightly, voice rising ferociously as he finished. 

 

"To be fair they did warn us."

 

"When?"

 

"Three weeks ago you got a letter. You crumpled it up and threw it in the garbage...and then cursed at the trash can in French."

 

He ran a hand through his hair. He had yet to pull it up in its customary bun. He had remembered to put his contacts in so it was a good day. He was wearing a gray t-shirt and his red cardigan atop his best pair of skinny jeans. Courfeyrac had had a crush on him when he first joined the ABC (that may have been why he joined but he'd only told Combeferre that) but according to most of his friends that was fairly common. Everyone had a thing for the fiery eyed revolutionary who worked harder than seemed humanly possible. It never lasted long, that is unless your name was Grantaire. 

 

He sighed. "Well do you have any ideas?" The front door clicked and Enjolras scowled at it. 

 

"Ferre?" Combeferre was Courfeyrac's only actual roommate, though with the coming and going of everyone it was hard to tell. 

 

Grantaire came into the living room and looked from him to Enjolras crumpled on the couch. _No_ he signed. _Just me_. 

 

"Hey R," he replied with the corresponding signs. He'd known Grantaire nearly four years now, and his ASL was getting pretty decent, though not as proficient as Jehan and   Bahorel's (they spent the most time with R), and oddly enough Enjolras, though that was probably to aid in their arguing. 

 

Enjolras explained the situation, his signs getting increasingly sharp and angry. 

 

"So to answer your question, no, I don't have any ideas."

 

"And it isn't as if we can shut down for 5 months."

 

"Of course not," Enjolras replied. 

 

  
_Are there any other locations in our budget?_ R asked. 

 

"Ferre and I have looked, but it has been tough," Courfeyrac said dejectedly. 

 

R frowned and went for the fridge to get a beer. 

 

Grantaire had never been the most enthusiastic supporter of their cause. He tended to believe, rather cynically that a bunch of students couldn't do much to solve problems or change lives. Maybe he didn't believe people could really change. 

 

He stuck around because...well everyone could see the way he looked at Enjolras, Enjolras the passionate would be martyr who saw the best in people and demanded it. Everyone knew except Enjolras, because talking to him about feelings was like talking to a brick wall. 

 

Courfeyrac had had many conversations with Jehan (resident romantic) and he seemed to think people who weren't accustomed to love had an odd way of showing it, or even accepting it. This, he theorized, was the reason that Grantaire found any excuse he could to pick (very eloquent) fights with him. He'd even been known to write him letters with points that couldn't be easily expressed with his hands. But it was good, Courfeyrac thought, Grantaire kept him grounded. 

 

"We've still got a little time, and we can move some projects for awhile until..."

 

"Absolutely not."

 

  
_Enjolras_ , here he used the name sign he'd given him a year ago, there was always a sort of tenderness in the way he signed his name. _That's not realistic_. 

 

"No, what's not realistic is shutting down when the people need us," he replied angrily. 

 

R rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. Courfeyrac was used to his dark glances and cocky smirks. Grantaire wasn't the most attractive of their group with his large crooked nose and scraggly beard, not to mention he drank too much. But he had a worldly nature about him that, even next to Enjolras, seemed to fit.

 

Courfeyrac got up and headed to the kitchen. Now was a good time for a grilled cheese. (Well every time was a good time for a grilled cheese but now especially.)

 

"Anyone up for grilled cheese?" He asked, signing where R could see. He shrugged off his jacket and threw it down on the chair beside R. 

 

"What's this?" Enjolras asked, and when he turned around he could see he was asking for R, who had a piece of paper in his hand. If it couldn't already be determined from the frequent invasions of his home, his friends were fairly nosy. 

 

"What does it look like?" He replied, pulling the cheese out of the fridge. 

 

  
_I know this guy_ , R signed. _He's friends with Cosette. He's_ , R made what Courfeyrac assumed was the sign for blind. _Isn't he?_  


 

"Yeah," he replied. "I'm going to call him." 

 

  
_I don't really know him but Cosette is lovely_. 

 

"I hate to be a wet blanket, but is now really the time to be picking up guys?" To be honest most of Courf's time involved picking up guys in one way shape or form.

 

  
_You're always a wet blanket_ , R replied. _And who made you the dating authority?_  


Enjolras sighed. "Well we have to find somewhere. We can't shut down."

 

"I know," Courfeyrac said.

 

***

"So are you going to call him or nah?" Combeferre said from his place on the couch. He was eating that weird organic ramen that he knew Courf hated. 

 

"So R told you then?"

 

He scoffed. "Was it a secret?"

 

"No, of course not. You people are just too involved in my personal life."

 

"Well to be fair there is an ultimate point."

 

Courfeyrac ran a hand through his tangled hair. "Which is?"

 

"R was the one who brought it up. He knows Marius's friend Cosette, who owns the coffee shop on third..."

 

"She owns it!"

 

"Her dad left it to her when he died. Anyway it's big enough for the ABC and if they were willing to extend hours so we could..."

 

"Are you really suggesting I ask the guy to convince his friend to do us a huge favor on the first date? Are you really suggesting that?"

 

He looked taken aback. "I'm not, R is." 

 

"Yeah, yeah is that shit any good?"

 

"Tastes like dishwater," he said through a mouthful of noodles. Combeferre had answered his flyer for: "a hella rad roommate who doesn't judge and will marathon Sex and the City with me," freshman year and they'd been cohabiting successfully since. Combeferre was a man of varied tastes: shitty organic ramen, French novelists, moths, and of course the ABC. They had joined together. Combeferre's friend (solely his friend at that point) Jehan had invited him. 

 

"Lemme try it," he replied. 

 

***

 

"Hey Mar--"

 

"Hey Cos--"

 

"You first," she said and he could hear the smile in her voice.

 

"Which one should I wear?" He was sitting cross legged on his bed beside two different sweaters. He didn't know much about their colors but he could judge the texture and feel of the fabrics, and by that count they were his favorites. 

 

She thought a moment. "This one. It matches your eyes and I know you'll deny it but it looks so cute on you."

 

"I don't have much ammunition with which to deny that," he said cheekily. 

 

"Okay, okay, now you've got to help me. I'm working the night shift alone with Ep tonight and I want to look like a hot piece of ass," she said seriously. He loved her for valuing his opinion on these matters, obviously no one else did. 

 

She handed him the first dress. It was soft and light and smelled like springtime.

 

 "So there's this one that doesn't have sleeves and has the dress shirt collar you know."

 

She handed him the other one. It was stiffer and cinched at the waist with ruffled sleeves. 

 

"The first one," he said.

 

"That's what I thought too. Thank you."

 

"Anytime. I'm told I have exquisite taste." She laughed, sweet and rolling like honey. He had a vague understanding of what Cosette looked like. He had felt her face: the small button nose and soft lips, hair that fell in thick gentle strands down her back. But to him she was always this laugh. 

 

"Are you nervous?"

 

He was practically shaking with anticipation. And at what? This supposed cute guy he'd only met once? Maybe it was because he was so forward, no one was really forward with him. Or maybe it was because it had been a long time since he'd went out with anyone. 

 

"Yes," he answered earnestly. 

 

"Well I'm not worried about you. He'd be a fool not to like you, she replied.

 

Somehow that sufficed to make things worse. He had been thinking more in terms of embarrassing himself by tripping over something up until then.

 

"Well I should get changed. You'll have to tell me all about it when I get back," she kissed him on the cheek. "Call me if you need me darling."

 

***

 

The restaurant Courfeyrac had picked was crowded. His cane tapped absently on the pavement as he waited for him out front. There was already a line forming. 

 

"Hey, I'm not late am I?" Courfeyrac said, coming up on his left side. 

 

"No, no, I'm early," he said awkwardly. Courfeyrac laughed. He was trying to get used to this new laugh. He thought he might like it. 

 

"Shall we?" His shadowy figure moved and Marius could tell he was offering him his arm. He gratefully accepted. It was easier to keep his concentration on not saying something stupid if he didn't have to worry about running into people or whacking their feet with his cane as he was known to do. 

 

Courfeyrac had reservations so they didn't have to wait long. He eagerly spouted the specials off the menu and explained all of his favorite dishes. He was actually kind of endearing when he got going. 

 

"So how long have you known Cosette?" Courfeyrac asked after they'd split a spinach and artichoke dip (Marius had claimed that he was at a disadvantage when it came to accessing the appetizer and that he should get a head start. Courfeyrac assented.)

 

"Since we were kids. She lived two doors down from me when we were growing up and her dad used to send her over to play with me," he laughed. "She wasn't really into the whole playing with the blind kid at first but her father always saw the best in people I guess so she kept coming back. And somewhere along the way she was playing with me just because she liked me and explaining what things looked like and playing Trouble."

 

"Oh I remember Trouble. Trouble was my shit."

 

"I always beat her. She never had the heart to cheat, even though it would've been easy."

 

"I respect a girl with a strong moral compass."

 

"She's my best friend," he said definitively before remembering that he, well more specifically Cosette, had been monopolizing the conversation. "I'm sorry, I'm not used to..." He gestured between them awkwardly. "This. I didn't intend to talk about Cosette all night. What do you do? You talk," he sputtered. 

 

"Well," he began grandly. "I'm studying social work at the university. I drink too much coffee, play ultimate frisbee, and ride on the whims of my ridiculous friends."

 

"Ridiculous?" He leaned his elbows on the table, smooshing them on some ill placed silverware. Shit why'd he have to be so funny, and why did his voice have to be so hot? "I'm intrigued." _Play it cool Pontmercy. Play it cool._  


"Have you ever heard of the ABC?"

 

***

"Hey can you pull those blueberry scones put of the oven?" Cosette obliged. Èp liked to bake up a batch of something special for the late night coffee hound crowd. 

 

She may or may not have pulled said tray out in the most flirtatious manner possible, ala Elle Woods in Legally Blonde. These were the times she was glad Marius couldn't actually see her and all her graceless glory. 

 

Èponine, for all her sly smiles and batted eyelashes, didn't notice. She could be incredibly clueless when it came to Cosette: which was not an encouraging sign. 

 

She grabbed a cookie from the discount bin. Her hair was pulled up in one of her adorable little messy buns and she was wearing an oversized sweatshirt from high school and batter stained jeans. Cosette felt stupid in her hand picked dress. 

 

"You look cute. You got a date?" She asked, not knowing how crushingly. 

 

"No," she replied dejectedly. "Just you." 

 

And Èp smiled that perfect smile and her knees got all weak again.

 

"Well I do," she smiled. "I met her on lesbian tinder."

 

"Oh yeah?" She said pitifully. 

 

"I'm really excited," she grinned, wiping down the counter. "God, I haven't been out in ages."

 

Cosette knew this. Cosette knew this well. 

 

"Is Mari out with that guy from earlier?"

 

"Yeah," she replied. "I think he likes him," she was trying to keep her voice even. It was difficult. 

 

"He doesn't get out much does he? _Even for a blind guy,"_ she finished dramatically. 

 

  
_Even for a blind guy_ came up a lot it seemed. Your friend Marius's cute for a blind guy. Marius doesn't talk much, even for a blind guy. Marius the blind guy? The law student blind guy? She heard these comments more often than he did. They were all their own brands of offensive or naïve, so much so that she and Èponine had made a joke of it. 

 

"He certainly doesn't," she said. _And apparently neither do I._  


_***_

"Hey Cosette _,"_ he burst through the door after fumbling aimlessly with the lock for a moment longer than usual. But he was a little tipsy and a lot excited and he needed to talk to someone about it, specifically Cosette. 

 

"What's up Mari?" she said from somewhere in the vicinity of the couch. She was trying to hide a sniffle. 

 

"What's wrong? What happened?" He tensed immediately. He knew from experience that when you were small like Cosette, or couldn't see like him, people didn't always treat you nicely. "Was it some jerk at the shop?" He was prepared to whack someone with his cane. 

 

"No, no," she laughed brokenly despite herself. "Ép's got a date...and it's not with me," she muttered. 

 

"Oh Cosette, I'm so sorry."

 

She sniffled again. "Don't worry about me, really, it's not a big deal. How was your date."

 

"No, no, no you don't get to do this. We're talking about you now, cm'ere," he sat down beside her and she laid her head in his lap. "What happened?"

 

"Have you been drinking?"

 

"A little, what happened?"

 

"Was it a good date?"

 

"Yes Cosette now what happened?"

 

***

Courfeyrac went back to the coffee shop the next day. Evidently Cosette was working because she was behind the counter and Marius was at the row of stools. Courf wondered mildly, if it was more precarious up there. Maybe it had taken practice to balance without your sight. 

 

He slid in beside him quietly. "Hello Courfeyrac how are you?"Cosette said cheerfully. 

 

Courfeyrac watched as Marius brightened and turned to him. "You don't have to sneak up on me like that you know," he said lightly. 

 

"I know but it was worth the look on your face when you realized I was here."

 

He blushed, he actually blushed. Cosette snorted. 

 

"Do you want something to drink Courfeyrac?" she asked, mostly, he thought, for the benefit of the still flustered Marius. He'd forgotten to take his sunglasses off but it didn't help much with his semblance of cool. 

 

"I actually have a business inquiry for you Cosette," he said anxiously. "It's more of a desperate plea."

 

"I'm listening," she said.

 

"As am I," Marius added. 

 

"Well you know that the student center is being remodeled?"

 

"It's about time."

 

"Yes, but that's where the Association for the Betterment of Campus meets...and our uh, intense leader is insisting that we continue to meet regularly."

 

"Oh my God you know Grantaire?"

 

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Yes I know Grantaire."

 

"You remember Grantaire right Mari? 

 

"I remember Grantaire alright. It's hard to forget someone who tries so hard to communicate with me despite the obvious obstacles in our way."

 

Courfeyrac thought R would like to hear that.

 

"Is he in the ABC?" Marius asked, curiously. It seemed to be clear, even to the outsider like Marius. that R didn't seem like the type. They tended to attract the more passionate idealist types. 

 

"Enjolras leads the ABC," she replied. That about summed it up. "So how can I help?" She said, turning back to Courfeyrac.

 

"Well we're having trouble finding a place that can fit everyone and isn't ridiculously expensive to rent."

 

"And you're thinking the Musain could work?" She paused to call out the name for the next order. 

 

"If you're okay with letting us use the building after hours about twice a week, and realize that we can pay but not well."

 

She twirled a lock of her blonde hair and topped off another patron's coffee. "I'm inclined to say yes," she said at last. "Because I trust your organization and I know several people in it. But I'd like for at least one of my employees to be present when you're here and I can give you half off our regular renting fee because I like you and it's a good cause."

 

"Thank you so much. You're really saving me here," he smoothed his hair out of his eyes. 

 

She grinned and so did Marius. "When is your meeting?" He asked. 

 

"Tomorrow night if that's alright with you," he told Cosette. 

 

"That's perfect. Mari can I count on you to be there then?" She said. And then to Courfeyrac: "He helps with finances so I consider him an employee."

 

"Yes, yeah of course I was meaning to go," he replied. 

 

***

Enjolras was happy with the temporary location. For such short notice Courfeyrac had done marvelously. He wasn't, however, as pleased with R in this new location. Somehow, the man who hardly spoke a word was the loudest person in the building. He already had a crowd of normally efficient members pulled into his gravity. They were staring with rapt attention at the story he was telling with his hands. Every so often they'd erupt into laughter and he'd take a swig from his flask as if it were some bizarre drinking game only he was playing. He'd even attracted the girls who evidently worked at the Musain because they lingered behind the counter watching him: the blonde one translating quietly for the brunette whose laughter was a few seconds behind. 

 

He was magnetic, he knew this, but not in the way that Grantaire was. He pulled people in with his warmth. He disarmed people with his openness and slightly self-deprecating jokes. Enjolras drew people in, but in more of an awed and slightly fearful orbit. 

 

Grantaire was a problem for several reasons. First, he claimed to be a member of the group despite not believing any of their goals were attainable.  Second, he was usually drunk when he attended said meetings, and unlike most he was actually better at arguing with people (read: Enjolras) when he was intoxicated. This made for very loud, very public disagreements that didn't help Enjolras establish himself as "chill" which was a lie but a lie he wished to perpetuate. And third, well he couldn't think of a third off the top of his head but he was sure there was one. 

 

Combeferre had pushed some tables together and put up little paper pyramids labeling the different sectors of services they provided: there was Combeferre's tutoring table, Courfeyrac's public forum in which students aired grievances and sought advice, Enjolras's social issues discussion panel, R's (drunken) ASL basics, Jehan's beauty tips ("for self confidence!" He had proclaimed. "That betters campus!"), first aid with Joly, self defense and campus safety with Bahorel, how to build a resume with Feuilly, and... "What's that?" He asked at the scrawled words: legal advice. 

 

"Oh right, right, Courf's boyfriend is a law student."

 

"He's not my boyfriend," Courf whispered harshly. 

 

"Well whoever he is I will look forward to meeting him."

 

The evening started off well. The regulars seemed to enjoy the new location, especially the pastries the pretty blonde girl who had introduced herself as Cosette was selling. People also seemed very interested in Marius's legal assistance.  

 

People left at the prescribed time, except the usual team of leadership: him, Combeferre, Courfeyrac, Joly, Bossuet, Feuilly, Bahorel, Grantaire for some reason, and Courf's new friend Marius. Combeferre had a status report to work on for the dean. Courfeyrac and Marius were in quiet, flirty correspondence in the corner, the others were cleaning up and discussing their various sessions. Jehan was showing Feuilly how to contour. 

 

R, as usual, was arguing with him. _I'm just saying that everyone's sick of this fundraising bullshit. We should wait and come up with a concept that doesn't just apply to people like you and..._  


  
_"_ People like me? What is that supposed to mean?"

 

_A book sale? On the day of sectionals? No one is going to be sober enough to read! And those who  are will go to the library. You know book worms are cheap. Plus I fail to see how our donation will do any good. The shelter is still going to close unless these asshat lawmakers change their tune. As usual there's nothing we can do. We never win._

 

In some part of his mind he knew that Grantaire had logical points, about most things really, it was just the fact that he punctuated ever valid thought with a pessimistic comment. How could he stand to be so unbelieving?

 

"You mean to say that since we may fail we shouldn't even try?"

 

He signed something Enjolras didn't understand. He cocked his head to one side in confusion, eyebrows furrowing. Grantaire's eyes softened. Something in Enjolras's chest started to hurt.

 

R reached for a piece of paper. _Application_ , he scrawled, making the corresponding sign. _Have you heard back on your application?_  He knew application how had he forgotten? Maybe it was something about R's eyes _._ They didn't usually shine like that. 

 

"No," he replied. He had applied to a very exclusive, very prestigious study abroad program that many of the well known public servants produced by the school had gone through. R had helped him make his essay sound less stiff. He was the only one he'd told. He didn't want the others to get their hopes up. R had few hopes to get up. 

 

  
_Not yet,_ Grantaire replied uncharacteristically, his face flushed and hair askew. He always did this. This out of character emotion that made Enjolras's palms sweat. 

 

Oh right, that was the third reason. 

 

***

Marius was surprised at how many people were happy to receive his legal advice. Several people asked about renewing visas, another couple asked about the LSAT, and he had a extensive conversation with one woman about the Supreme Court. No one seemed to care that he couldn't see the paperwork they were describing. The room was loud but not uncomfortably so. Sometimes too much noise paralyzed him and it got bad. But this was okay. 

 

"Hey, you doing alright?" Courfeyrac came over and asked when most of the tables were vacant. 

 

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Courfeyrac's hand was on his shoulder. 

 

"You just seemed kind of swamped earlier."

 

"I liked it. It was fun."

 

"Did Cosette leave already?" She had. It hadn't been the best week for her. The girl Èponine went out with was, unfortunately, a member of the ABC. And Èp had spent the entire evening chatting her up. 

 

"Yeah," he replied. 

 

"Do you have a way to get home? It's getting dark."

 

"Is it now?" He said, quirking up an eyebrow. 

 

"Right, sorry...I was going to offer to give you a ride...if you needed one."

 

"That would be great." Courfeyrac was flustered; he could tell. 

 

"Well great. Let me get my coat."

 

Courfeyrac's car smelled like pine and take out. He leaned back into the passenger seat and listened as a dusting of rain drummed on the car windows. 

 

Courfeyrac punched the address into his phone's GPS and started the car. 

 

"I like the ABC," Marius said after a moment of only the rain and turn signal. 

 

"I'm glad you do." He replied. 

 

Marius knew this was strange. He'd only just met Courfeyrac and he couldn't see him to tell if he looked like an upstanding person or not. Yet something about the way he laughed and his hand on his shoulder felt like they'd known each other in a past life. It felt like they were already friends. Of course he wouldn't say this, that would be ridiculous. 

 

The car rolled on and Marius could feel the light on his face, the shadows, the energy. Courfeyrac stopped. It was a short drive. He shut off the engine and the silence wrapped them up in a blanket. It was the good kind of silence, the silence that came with knowing exactly what someone else was thinking. 

 

"Well I guess I should go," Marius said. But he didn't turn to. Instead he leaned in closer to Courfeyrac, who leaned in in turn. He could hear his breath and feel it on his neck. 

 

"Okay," Courfeyrac said, but he was kissing him instead. It was warm and it was soft and it was everything that made Marius feel lightheaded and dizzy. He pulled away. 

 

"Can you tell me what this moment looks like?" He paused. "So I can remember."

 

"Well," Courfeyrac began, voice hoarse in the dark. "The light from the donut shop beside your building is reflecting off the window and it's making you look pink and making shadows that tilt around...I don't think I'm doing this right," he said self consciously.

 

"There is no right or wrong," he replied. He tried to picture pink. 

 

"And your eyes are really big and your freckles are really cute and the rain is dripping down the windows in a kaleidoscope of colors." Marius tried to imagine a kaleidoscope. He knew the concept: crystals in tilting patterns that you looked through a tube to. It didn't matter if it was right. It was beautiful and that was enough. 

 

"Thank you," he said softly. He kissed him again, this time longer and with more feeling. 

 

"You're welcome," he replied. 

 

***

 

The next day Marius didn't hear from Courfeyrac until 4:15 p.m. It was a phone call: "Hey are you busy? Do you have class? Because I really need to talk to you."

 

"No, I don't," Marius said, eyebrows furrowing. It was then that he realized that Courfeyrac didn't sound okay.

 

"Is something wrong?" It was hard to mask the heavy breathing on the other line. 

 

"Can I come over and talk to you?" He asked, voice strained. "Please?"

 

"Of course."

 

It wasn't long before a knock on his door startled Marius out of his worry. 

 

"Courfeyrac what is it?" He asked. It was still raining from the night before and he could hear the dripping when Courfeyeac came in. "You're soaked."

 

"I'm sorry I'm sorry there was just an emergency and I thought...well I don't know what I thought I'm not thinking clearly. I thought you could help I guess," he said all of this in a rapid, waterlogged manner, and it took Marius a moment to grasp what exactly what he was saying. 

 

"What happened?" He led him back to the couch, he didn't need his cane in the familiar environment but he took extra care not to trip and cause more chaos. 

 

"Well I don't think I told you but I'm here on scholarship. Almost entirely on scholarship actually, my family couldn't even afford community college. I mean even with financial aid I'd have to take out loans and I was just going to get a job after high school like my dad until I found out about this scholarship for kids like me who were interested in social work. They have them for all sorts of departments but it's basically a full ride contingent on keeping your grades up so you can have it renewed every year and...well it was kind of prestigious to get. The application and interview process was hell but I really wanted to go to college. And today I got this letter from the board and...I just don't understand it Marius it doesn't even seem legal. Like they breached a contract or something..."

 

"What did the letter say?"

 

"It said that they're not renewing it," his voice shook. "My grades are still good and I don't have a disciplinary record. I don't understand. I'm a year from graduation how can they do this?"

 

"Do you have the letter?" He asked urgently. 

 

"I'll read it to you:

 

 Dear Mr. Courfeyrac, 

 

We regret to inform you that we will be not renewing your Barnes Social Work scholarship this year. The board has had to reallocate funds and we are unable to continue to offer you this money. Please contract the academic management office with any questions.We apologize for any inconvenience.

 

Sincerely, 

 

Board of Scholarship

 "What the fuck do they mean apologize for the inconvenience? They're effectively expelling me. I can't pay for this year. The money plus my savings from work covered room and board and everything I needed. My credit's shit so I don't think I can get a loan and...can they do this? Can they really just do this?"

 

Marius sucked in a breath. "Was there a contract insuring the money would be automatically renewed unless you did poorly?"

 

"No," he said darkly. "I just trusted what the admissions people told me."

 

"Well you can still sue the school but it might be difficult without a formal contract."

 

"You see I can't," Courfeyrac muttered. 

 

"Why not? If it's money I can find you a counselor who owes me a favor. You can't let them pull this shit on you it's blatant mistreatment of a student and they'll do it again if you don't..."

 

"No Marius the dean threatened to shut the ABC down, and expel Enjolras."

 

"What the fuck! When? How?"

 

"Do you have anything to drink? I need a drink."

 

"There's beer in the fridge." Courfeyrac got up. 

 

"Enjolras does have a record, mostly for protests gone awry. He's been on thin ice with the administration since freshman year. And the dean knows we're friends, and that I could never stand to see the ABC shut down on my account so..."

 

"He threatened you?" Marius set his jaw.

 

"Not openly, but he knew what he was doing."

 

"Shit."

 

"I just don't understand why."

 

"Have you told Enjolras yet?"

 

"I don't want him to go down for assaulting the dean."

 

"Is there any way that financial aid...I could loan you some..."

 

"Jesus Christ Marius you only met me a week ago."

 

"I know but they can't just..."

 

"Surely there's some way we could..."

 

"Talk to your friends. Tell them what you told me."

 

"What if I can't make up the money in time. What the hell am I supposed to do?"

 

"Don't freak out just yet you still have time. Just take a deep breath." Marius used to get awful headaches when he went to overly loud and crowded places. It was always a splitting headache, an itchy feeling of of panic, and a chest full of fire. He imagined this to be what Courfeyrac was feeling. 

 

 ***

"The heartless, unfeeling, sick and twisted, bureaucratic..." He'd stopped signing in his rage but R was good enough at reading lips to get the gist. 

 

  
_Assholes,_ he signed, both reminding Enjolras of his presence and finishing the thought. The whole gang was there, plus Courfeyrac's Marius, Cosette, and Èponine who he'd only met last night. What was that Enjolras said about injustice? It brings people together. 

 

As usual he was being unrealistic about the whole thing. He'd threatened multiple times to let them expel him. Grantaire thought he might have some sort of martyr complex. But what a beautiful man to martyr. 

 

"Of course you can't quit," Jehan said, signing. He still had a bedraggled flower crown in his hair from the night before. "That doesn't help Courf any. And we're not disbanding the ABC. Not like this."

 

He had a point. Courfeyrac was looking more downtrodden than he'd ever seen him. 

 

"And it's not just Courf anymore. After we tweeted about this mess we got 15 messages and emails and phone calls about the same thing happening to others. They're all still in good standing at school and they all home from low income families."

 

"One girl came into the Musain sobbing," Èponine said, Cosette signing for her. "We need to get these bastards."

 

"So we protest," Enjolras said, as if it was that easy. "We hold a rally. We march up to the administration building and raise hell."

 

Hell raising was something Enjolras prided himself on. Grantaire wasn't sure if it was something the others wanted in red ink on their records. 

 

"Enjolras we can't. They'll expel you. They'll disband us," Courfeyrac said.  

 

"There is no us without you."

 

"I think that's a tad dramatic," Courfeyrac said. 

 

  
_I don't think_ so Grantaire signed, he didn't know why he was interjecting but suddenly he felt Enjolras's eyes on him. _It's not just about you anymore Courf. I'm sorry but we can't sit back and let the administration screw over every poor kid at the school._ Courfeyrac maybe winced a bit at the word poor, force of habit he supposed.

 

  
_We can't quit. And that's saying something coming from me._ Rsigned and Enjolras looked at him, right at him in a way he didn't usually. This must be what it's like to be on his side. The look was almost overwhelming in its power. R thought that if he did side with Enjolras most of the time he might burst from the intensity of it. How did he look at everyone like that? How did he have that much excess emotion?

 

There came a strange silence over the group of them: the silence that came with connection. That was one thing you could always say about Enjolras, he connected people of all backgrounds. He brought them together with his unwavering faith in his lofty ideas. It was too easy to get sucked up in it all. 

 

"Thank you," Enjolras said after, when they walked out into the muggy heat of the late spring evening. "You didn't have to didn't have to stand with me and you did anyway."

 

Grantaire stuck his hands deeper in his pockets and shrugged. 

 

"Well thank you anyway. I know we don't usually get along," he sucked in a breath. Was that nervousness? Grantaire was used to deciphering glances and expressions but with Enjolras it was different. Everything about him was either too open or too closed and he could never tell which was manifesting itself in his eyes. "Hey do you ever think we could..." He stopped. Had he forgotten the sign or was it human hesitation? 

 

_Could what?_

"Talk," he said. "Just the two of us?"

 

He wasn't exactly sure what that meant but he nodded anyway, because Enjolras was looking a little flushed and most definitely nervous. 

 

"Okay, I'll...um see you tomorrow R."

 

***

Courfeyrac was coming with him so it would be okay, Marius told himself. He didn't like crowds. He'd gotten lost and sweaty with panic within them too often. 

 

Courfeyrac's hand was anchored to his as he weaved him through the crowd. According to Courf approximately 50 people had already joined the sharp voiced crusader on his mission. Marius got whacked by several signs on the way to the front. He gripped Courfeyrac's hand tighter. 

 

"We'll stay up on the platform with Enjolras and the others okay? You'll be safe up there."

 

"You sound like Cosette," he said. 

 

"Good, I like Cosette."

 

She babies me, he thought. She's a good friend but she worries about me like I'm a child.  

 

"Careful there are steps here," he helped him up and joined the group of organizers on the platform. 

 

"Students," Enjolras's voice was amplified with thunderous power. Courfeyrac leaned over and whispered that they had closer to a hundred people now. "We are gathered here today protest the injustice of the administration. Those at the top cannot deprive low income students of scholarship money they have been promised. They cannot  threaten student groups to silence us. They cannot fail to explain themselves after numerous inquiries and attempts to communicate privately. If the administration continues to hide the money from its students we will protest. We will not let them cheat us out of our education!" The crowd roared and Marius felt his knees quiver unconsciously. He didn't like crowds. He very much didn't like crowds.

 

They started chanting, a steady drum of "We need answers!" Feet pounded on the makeshift podium. 

 

"Are you okay?" Courf whispered, hand leaving his so he could wrap his arm around his waist. 

 

"Yeah," he breathed. The energy of everything was sucking him in to a righteous whirlpool. The next part was supposed to be testimonies from wronged students, of which 27 had come forward. But with this much noise and pent up anger it seemed the protest would combust before then. 

 

There was no response from the administration building yet. Courfeyrac told him that a line of police officers was forming around the mass of people. 

 

Marius felt the disaster before it began. First a gruff and angry voice from the back of the crowd shouted: "They ruined my fucking life and now they're sicking the cops on me?" Courfeyrac later said that the man belonging to the voice had lunged at the officers around him, swearing, with his fists flying. There was a rumble through the crowd and then fists were flying all over the place. The cops pounced. 

 

"Fuck," Courfeyrac swore, hand on his arm. There was pounding near his feet. People were pushing up against the flimsy wooden platform. It was cracking. 

 

Marius hit the ground hard and painfully. He hit his head. Everything went dizzy and sickening and he lost hold of Courfeyrac. 

 

"Marius!" Someone was restraining him he could tell.

 

"Sir you're going to have to come with me."

 

"Fuck you I've gotta help...you don't understand he's..."

 

Marius couldn't hear him anymore, only Combeferre on a megaphone telling everyone to stay calm and the police to leave them alone. "If we remain peaceful they cannot touch us!" He practically pleaded. Marius tried to stand so he wouldn't be stepped on. His ears were ringing. 

 

"Help! Help, someone!" There was a hand on his wrist. 

 

"Marius are you okay honey? Let's get out of here." It was Jehan, Marius still felt like he couldn't breathe. 

 

"Courfeyrac," he gasped. "Where'd they take Courfeyrac?"

 

***

It wasn't supposed to happen like that. It was supposed to be peaceful. It was supposed to be effective and well organized. When the platform collapsed R was by his side. He gripped his hand, tight and scared, and looked at him urgently. Enjolras didn't need words to understand what that meant. It was time to bail. 

 

They regained their footing on the pavement. Someone hit Grantaire with a sign and shoved him...into an officer who clearly mistook the gesture for aggression. He held R by the wrists. 

 

"You're under arrest for assaulting a police officer," the man said. He towered over the two of them and his gaze was lethal. Around them the shouting grew louder. 

 

"No, you don't understand he wasn't..." The officer had R in handcuffs. R was looking at him with terrified eyes. Enjolras had never seen him scared like that. His hands, his voice, were restrained. 

 

Enjolras immediately regretted it. It was the dumbest thing he could do in that situation and he knew it. But R was scared and trapped and adrenaline was making him shake and it was so damn loud. He shoved the officer, putting a hand on R's shoulder as if that would free him. 

 

R shook his head. "I'm sorry sir but I'm going to have to arrest you for assaulting a police officer," the officer who had R's companion said. He took Enjolras by the wrists and shoved handcuffs on him. 

 

"You don't understand...R!" He said futilely. There was no way Grantaire could concentrate on his lips in the chaos. Well there was one way, and the horror on his face was enough to push Enjolras to do it. 

 

When R was little his parents refused to learn sign language. They made him read their lips and speak, though it pained him to do so, instead of use his hands. Some days they bound his wrists behind his back to keep him from using ASL. There were other abuses, but he didn't speak of them. Most of what Enjolras knew about R's turbulent childhood came out when he was drunk. 

 

When R's hands were bound he remembered, and Enjolras saw him remember. "It's okay," he said desperately. They were beginning to be dragged apart. "It's okay R we'll..." He leaned in; there was just enough space, and he kissed him right on the mouth. 

 

He looked shocked, but he also looked less paralyzed with fear. "It's going to be okay R," he said again."

 

Just before he was turned away he saw R nod. 

 

***

It was a sit down in the shower kind of week. She'd let the warm water rush over her and feel her lungs expanding and contracting and feel lost and like she was flailing. It was one of those weeks when she wondered if Marius even liked her after all the years of inflated worry and annoyed huffs of breath. 

 

It was not a good week for a call from the police. 

 

"I have to go down to the police station," she said stiffly. Èponine was already in her apron. 

 

"What happened?" Her beautiful eyebrows furrowed together. 

 

"The protest...it got out of hand," Èp and Cosette were tasked with publicizing the event but couldn't attend due to the shop. Regardless their names, and Marius, connected them to its success and downfall. It was looking like downfall. 

 

"Oh no," she put down the bowl of ganache she was working on. "Is Mari okay?" 

 

"He's in jail," she said. She didn't look up. Her fists were clenched at her sides. This couldn't be happening, not now, not when she'd just let him out of her sight. 

 

"It's not your fault Sette. He wanted to go," she looked at her with big brown eyes and a concerned line of a mouth. How did she always know what to say?

 

"I know," she said, though she didn't. "I have to go get him."

 

"I'll come with you," she said. 

 

She shook her head, blonde hair whipping into her already teary eyes. "Look Èp I have to tell you something because it has been a terrible week and if it goes down from here I can live with that."

 

"What is it?" She asked. She came out from behind the counter.

 

Cosette sucked in a breath. She didn't feel brave and this seemed the thing that usually required at least a tablespoon of bravery. "I like you," she said. "I have feelings for you. I'm sorry but I do."

 

"Don't be sorry," she said, her mouth had fallen open a little bit. 

 

"Well I know you're dating other people so I won't..."

 

"No do," she interrupted. "Please do. I'd like it if you...did."

 

"You would?"

 

She nodded. 

 

"Can I kiss you then?" Èponine took a step toward her and then her hand was on her waist. This couldn't be happening. She leaned in and gently pressed her lips to Èponine's. They were soft and tasted sweet and Cosette's heart was pounding loud enough to hear. She drew back. 

 

"Well now that that's settled we should go get him," she said, blushing. 

 

"Yeah I guess we should," Èponine said. "Why didn't we do that sooner?"

 

Cosette sighed. "Well you were on lesbian tinder..."

 

"Screw lesbian tinder."

 

Maybe this week would turn around. 

 

***

They put everyone arrested in the protest into one giant cell. Courfeyrac was grateful for this because it meant that it was easier to locate Marius and make sure he was okay. 

 

"Marius, Marius oh my god I'm so sorry," he was trying not to cry but it was hard when there was blood on Marius's face and he was limping beside Jehan. "Are you two okay?" He pulled Marius into a hug that lasted a good three minutes. "I was so fucking worried."

 

"I fell down, and I couldn't find you," he sounded dazed. 

 

"Did you hit your head?"

 

"I think so. I'm a little disoriented." 

 

"Let's sit down," he led him over to a relatively empty bench and sat him down on it. "I called Cosette," he said. She had sounded more shocked than angry on the phone. 

 

"Good," he said distantly. 

 

"Here, put your head in my lap." Marius obliged and Courfeyrac was filled with the raw panic of someone who had just fucked up something really good. 

 

"I'm so so sorry," he repeated. 

 

"It's not your fault things got out of hand."

 

"If I wasn't there you wouldn't have gone."

 

"I made my choice," he said flatly, and then with some bite: "I am capable of making my own choices."

 

"I know. I know. I'm just...I never wanted you to..."

 

"It's okay," he cut him off, feeling around for his hand and settling on his knee. "You're okay."

 

Courfeyrac didn't recognize all of the people in the cell. They'd managed to catch most of the ABC: Enjolras and Grantaire were at the opposite corner with Combeferre pacing beside them. Joly was tending to a cut on Bossuet's face. But there were plenty of non-ABC people too, looking scared or strangely casual, checking the time impatiently on the cracked clock on the opposite wall. No one had been released yet. 

 

"Do you think people are going to notice? I mean I know it didn't work out the way he wanted it to but..."

 

"Marius if someone doesn't notice a protest turned riot in the middle of campus the problem is worse than we thought."

 

He laughed, that was encouraging. "I guess. But they could just chalk it up to dumb kid shit."

 

He was right. The problem Enjolras always seemed to have was getting people to take a 21 year old with strong ideals seriously. 

 

Marius's head was still in his lap, cloudy and unfocused eyes finding his face purely on sound. He had some dried blood on his temple. Courfeyrac was about to apologize again when an officer slammed open the barred doors. 

 

"Everyone's bailed out. You sure as hell better thank the blonde out there." The 25 or so people in the cell cheered. 

 

"Cosette," Marius moaned, sitting up. "She didn't have to...well of course she did."

 

Courfeyrac helped him up. 

 

***

"Mari," Cosette wrapped him in a bone crushing hug as soon as his cell phone and wallet had been returned to him. The last time she'd hugged him like that was after the 6th grade dance when a group of sadistic bastards had locked him in a supply closet for most of the night. Like before he was both relieved and embarrassed. He didn't like to worry her like this. 

 

She drew back and cupped his face in her hands. She brushed the hair from his forehead and made a discontented sound at the cut. "Are you alright?"

 

"A little dazed, still can't see but that's normal." She laughed, a little breathlessly and pulled him back for another hug.

 

He was always a little paranoid people hung out with him out of pity, and then things like this happened. 

 

"So you're a certified rebel now," Èponine said, putting a hand on his shoulder. It was steadying. "You guys are all over Twitter."

 

"What?" Courfeyrac asked from behind him. 

 

"Yeah, #ABCriot and #weneedanswers are trending," she evidently showed Courf on her phone because he muttered "Holy shit."

 

"The local stations are all picking it up," Cosette said. "And they're investigating the school's finances."

 

"I guess it wasn't for nothing then," Marius said. Nothing was ever for nothing but he was glad the protest, even if it was being dubbed a riot, was making a splash.

 

"I guess they can't disband us now," Courfeyrac said. 

 

"I don't see how they could," Cosette said. "Alright Mari we're taking you to the hospital. Courfeyrac have you confirmed that all your friends are okay?"

 

"Yeah, Combeferre is driving people. I'll come with you to the hospital."

 

"You don't need to..."

 

"He wants to," Cosette cut him off. "Let him."

 

They helped him into the back seat and he closed his eyes. Èponine let him rest his head in her lap."

 

"He's not going to get hurt again under your watch do you understand me?" Cosette was saying to Courfeyrac in the passenger seat. They must have thought he was too out of it to hear. 

 

"Yes, of course, he was never supposed to be..."

 

"But he was," she said coldly. "And that can't happen again."

 

"I know. Of course it can't, I know."

 

"As long as we're clear," she said with more tight anger than he'd heard from her. 

 

***

The next day the university and local papers broke the story: School takes money promised to low income students to pay for new football trainer. It was messy, and it was public, but Courfeyrac and the other students got their scholarships renewed. 

 

Attendance at new ABC meetings skyrocketed. 

 

"Hey Marius," he was going over an agenda for the next meeting printed in Braille. 

 

"Yeah?"

 

He took a deep breath. "I'm sorry we got off to such a weird start. I never intended for us to be protesting or in jail or for you to get hurt and I...well look if you want to end it don't feel bad. I know the past couple of weeks have been crazy."

 

"Are you kidding me?"

 

Courf blinked. "No? Why would I...?"

 

"The last two weeks have been the most exciting thing that's happened to me since I moved out of my grandfather's house."

 

"Really? And you've liked it?"

 

"Of course I have. I like you."

 

"I like you too," he grinned. 

 

"Now can I get a hot chocolate or are Èp and Cosette too busy making heart eyes at each other to make anything?"

 

"I'm going to have to say the latter unfortunately."

 

***

  
_So,_ Rsigned slowly. _What was that about?_ Themeeting was about to begin and Enjolras was looking at his notes and avoiding Grantaire.

 

"What was...? Oh, that I..." He wasn't usually flustered. He dared to think this was actually about what he thought it was. 

 

"Well you looked scared. And I was scared. And you couldn't talk because," he gestured vaguely. "Your hands and I...we I don't know. I'm sorry," he was blushing, and he was angry about it which made him blush more. 

 

_Wow, this is a first._

"A first for what?" He muttered. 

 

_For you apologizing to me._

He rolled his eyes. 

 

  
_So you don't..._ He hesitated. Did he really want to know, definitively, after all this time that he wasn't what Enjolras wanted?

 

"Don't what?" He persisted, leaning his elbow on the table. Around them people were setting up. The meeting would begin soon. 

 

  
_Don't like me...like that._ He tried to emphasize it so Enjolras would understand. 

 

"I do though. Oh I thought that was clear. I like you too. That's also why I...thought you were asking why I kissed you right then. I did intend on kissing you later."

 

R's eyes were wide. _Okay. Okay I didn't get that._  


"Yes, um well. That's what I meant. Do you like...?"

_Yes, a lot._

Enjolras smiled. And it lit up his face in a way that was beyond the intense happiness of a march or well planned speech. "Do you want to have dinner with me Saturday then?"

 

  
_Yes._ Oh my god so very much yes, he thought. 

 

***

Cosette pushed all the chairs and tables out of the way, leaving a wide expanse of floor just large enough to pass as a dance floor. Èponine put up lights, the twinkly kind that looked like stars if you squinted. Courfeyrac brought his record player and they switched the open sign to closed. 

 

The whole ABC joined in their makeshift dance. Jehan was showing Combeferre and Joly how to make paper swans in the corner, Enjolras and Grantaire were decorating cookies Èponine had set out for the occasion, and Marius and Courfeyrac were swaying slowly in the center of the floor, chests pushed together, breathing in synch as other couples outpaced them with dance moves more fitting to the tempo. 

 

Èponine grabbed Cosette by the waist and twirled her in a sleepy motion. They swayed together. For once she took her eyes off of Marius. 

 

"He'll be fine you know. He likes him."

 

"I know," she said. "We've just been together for so long without anyone else and now..."

 

Èponine's lips curled into a smile. "And now you both have someones."

 

She nodded. "Now we do."

**Author's Note:**

> Welp that took a lot longer than I thought. If I've messed something up in regards to the blind and deaf communities let me know. I don't research as much as I should and I'm sorry for it. 
> 
> This is inspired by that one lyric in On My Own. You know the one. Title comes from Dodie Clark's song Intertwined (look it up it's sweet.)
> 
> For Talia, I've tried to include everything you like. Sorry it took so long. Feel better, you're a rock star. <3


End file.
